Beach Trip

Lots more pictures to come-Thanks Ashton for the AWESOME collages! You rock! I love all you do!

Gotcha Day Celebration

It is hard to believe that today we celebrate that special moment when all of our dreams came true, the moment when Anna Grace finally joined our family. It is one of those moments that I will never forget. Anyone who thinks that adoption is a last resort is so wrong. Adoption is a blessing straight from God that forever changes all who are involved. I cannot imagine how different our lives would be without the joy of Anna Grace. There is not a day that goes by that she doesn't remind us how blessed we are to be her family. I can't imagine how much more blessed we will be once we are able to bring our son home.
Today we celebrated this special day at the beach. Nana went shopping and brought home cake, gifts and more. Anna Grace was thrilled. She kept saying "it's my gotcha day" So precious. She had a ball opening presents and eating cake.
So much has changed in two years. She is no longer a baby. She is growing into such a precious little girl. Thought I would make notes of all that she is doing now.
***She loves Princess stuff more than anyone I have ever seen-You will not see her without a crown or high heel shoes. She always has on a princess gown. We have mortified my other kids letting her dress this way in public but I figure I will choose my battles :)
***She talks non stop. She tells you what to say during a conversation. If she does something good, she will say "say good job Anna Grace" It is quite funny. She also takes opportunities to tell us how our actions are affecting her heart---"you make my heart cry" "you make my heart smile"
***She loves her sissy, ammy and haney grace(these are her names for them) They still think she hung the moon
***She loves to get her nails "done" she makes the ladies at the nail salon laugh everytime
***Bop Bop(my dad) is her favorite person in the world. There is no place she would rather be than curled up beside him watching Barney
***Barney is her very favorite show-she watches it all of the time. She still loves Dora but noone compares to the purple dinosaur
***She has started swimming in the pool with just arm floaties. She is a little fish.
***She is potty trained-woo hoo! Ella came to visit us at the beach and that was all it took. If Ella can wear panties, then so can I!
***Anna Grace is a pure joy! She is a blessing straight from the hands of God!

PA

We just rec'd a call from our agency that they rec'd our PA from China today!!! We are so excited-Can't wait to finish up our paperwork and send it to China!

Kisses for our sweet boy!

KISSES IN THE WIND

We hold you in our hearts
and touch you in our dreams.
You are here each day with us,
at least that's how it seems.

We know you wonder where we are...
what's taking us so long.
But remember child, We love you so
and God will keep you strong.

Now go outside and feel the breeze
and let it touch your skin...
Because tonight, just as always,
We blow you kisses in the wind.

May God hold you in His hand
until We can be with you.
We promise you, our darling,
We're doing all that We can do.

Very soon, you'll have a family for real,
not just pretend.
But for tonight, just as always,
We blow you kisses in the wind.

May God wrap you in His arms
and hold you very tight.
And let the angels bring the kisses
that We send to you each night.

--- Unknown

Missing our sweet boy tonight and praying that things move quickly-

LOI

Today our LOI(Letter Of Intent) was emailed to China stating that we want to be parents to the little one waiting for us in China. This process is much different than with Anna Grace. Now we await China's approval (PA) Then we can officially know that China accepts us as his parents. I am knee deep in paperwork and online classes right now. It is crazy but we are SOOOOO excited! Can't wait until we can send our dossier to China and begin the official wait! Please pray that things go quickly.

Blessed with four-Bringing home one more!

So much to share with you sweet friends-We have accepted the referral of a precious little one in China. We are not able to share info about him right now but I can say that soon it will seem as if we have twins running through our house. We are excited and blessed beyond belief. We ask that you join us in prayer during this time-Prayer for God to prepare his heart for us-Quick bonding and attachment----That God would continue to heal his needs---That our paper chase will go quickly so that we can bring this precious one home. It is our desire to be in China with him for Christmas this year. Can't wait to share more---Thanks for your prayers!

The 1st time we saw her face

I can't believe that 2 years ago today, we saw the face of our little angel. Here is what I posted on our blog that day-
UPS delivered our baby at 10:15 this morning. Stork Chad was shocked to know he was delivering but he was a great sport! I can't put into words the pure joy of seeing my babies face for the 1st time. It was so much better than I ever imagined. Unbelievable-Amazing-Breathtaking! I am even more in love. In the 2nd picture we rec'd, she is holding a bear and it has the initial "A" on it. How neat is that? She looks so tiny and petite. Her lips are perfect and precious! I know that is the mommy talking but I think she is the most precious, beautiful thing I have ever seen! I don't know how we will endure the wait to go get her

Nothing could have prepared us for the joy of that moment-it was a love so intense that I could not believe I had to wait 2 months to hold my daughter-she was ours and we were thrilled and so thankful to God for orchestrating the entire process. I can't believe how much she has grown in these 2 years. It is as if she has been with us forever. We are forever changed by the beauty and gift of international adoption. I would go back again today if it were possible.